The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-12-08

not probable that it can do this as TO any con-
siderable portion of the remaining debt
Tho sinking fund requirements OF the last
fiscal year were 81, 900. 248 Is. which, deducted
from the surplus revenue, viz. $l03, Al. 09I69,
left 800. o6 849 81 uncalled for by any law; this
rocey, together with further sum from &C
cum U ations of former years, was devoted to the
retirement of the per cent. bonds. so that. in
ALL $19, s64. 100 of per cent bonds were retired
during that year in addition to those carried to
the sinking fund. making a grand total OF Sl27.-
Oh. $50 per cents. retired in 1887.
.'All of the per cent bonds have been can
celed. The siuKing-fund requirements of the
fiscal year ending juno 30, 1888, have already
been met, and now there il no way, under exist
ing laws, to put out again among the people the
surplus money which comes into the Treasury,
except it be that clause in an appropriation act
OF 1881 authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury
TO purchase bonds in the market at such price.
and IN such amounts as he may think BEST
power which unnecessarily ought not to be given
to. and responsibility which ought not TO be
put upon. any officer Of government
II do not mention deposits in national bank
repositories a means of keeping the crculat-
ing media available for business purposes, for
that resource at best is very limited under pres
ent laws and ought not to be used except In ex-
ceptional circumstances. such as have existed of
late. and because there is no better thing to do.
There is in the Treasury of available funds at
this date, Dec. l, 1887, after every possible obi
cation has been paid for. the sum of $55, 258,-
701. 49, which every dav grows larger. A care
full estimate shows that this sum will be in
creased to $40. 900. 900 at the end of this fiscal
appropriation laws.
.'Unsefish Craftsmanship must be in
voked to save the people from the dangers which
the new conditions threaten. cannot believe
that il will adopt the second expedient. viz, the
enlargement of government expenses simply to
pend money raised by taxation, when the pub
lie veal does not otherwise call for the expendi-
ture. Every dollar taken By taxation from the
man who has it employed in business which
the natural wants Of the community call for,
and carried into the Treasury, even if at once
paid out again to satisfy obligations created by
law in excess of the healthy needs of govern
ment, is doller used to mlsemploy labor and to
impoverish the people, and q conse-
Quence to impose in the end the burden OF the
excessive taxation upon the labor OF the country.
I'VE can easily comprehend the case if we
consider a community of say hundred men.
If ten of the number of this community are
employed in the construction of Notifications or
of public buildings. it Is evident that the other
ninety must expend a portion of the fruits Of
their labor in the support of the ten; to do this
they must either work moro hours and days in
the year than they otherwise would do, or they
must deprive themselves OF certain comforts and
savings. The same relations of labor in general
to labor employed by government obtain In our
great community OF sixty million OF people.
although numbers and the complex nature of
society make it less easy to connect financial
and labor troubles with the causes thereof.
II have used as illustrations fortlfcations and
public buildings. not because the governments
should not build Notifications to such an extent
will give the country ample protection
against invasion and enable it at all times to
maintain its dignity, or because it should not
build public buildings OF such size and numbers
are needed for the convenient and fitting
transaction of public business, but to show that
even the most mertorious expenditures Of gov
eminent are seldom anything but unDroduc-
tive burden upon the whole body OF labor, and
that co nseQuently taxation beyond the absolute
needs of government is an injury to the people
of the country, no matter for what purposes the
proceeds Of taxation are expended
both bon d-buying, except for sinking fund
purposes. and governmental expenditure in ex-
cess of the needs of the government should be
rejected.
Reduction of the revenue from taxation is
the only fit remedy for the evils which threaten
the country. This may be accomplished in vari-
Gus ways. One which has been proposed is to
compel decrease of importations and conse-
quently decrease of revenue from customs, by
largely increasing the rates of duties. This
plan could be made to reduce the customs reve-
nue. but it would increase the peoples taxation
far more than it would decrease the revenues,
and should not be adopted.
Another way is to reduce or abolish internal
revenue taxation. In favor OF this is the
fact that in small part of the Southern States
the internal tax on liquor and tobacco is
thought to be oppressive, and is odious to the
people of those regions; and the further fact
that by its reduction the expenses of its collec-
ton might be somewhat reduced. By its total
abolition they might be done away with
altogether. These expenses, shown by the
complete and interesting report OF the Commits
sioner of Internal Revenue which is commended
to your careful attention, amounted during the
fiscal year to 81, O65, las, 81. being three and
forty-hundredths per centum OF the amount
collected. The cost of the collection of the
revenue from customs for the same year WAS
Sc. $50, 1885, It, being three and twelve hundredths
per centum of the amount collected.
1.-THE chief cause for the prejudice against
this tax seems TO be that as there was no such
tax before the war for the Union, it is looked
upon q remainder of the measures adopted to
raise money to carry on the war, and which
ought not to be continued in time Of peace, and
interfering in some way with the natural
rights of mankind to grow grain and tobacco
and manufacture therefrom spirits cigars, snuff
and the various forms of merchantable tobacco.
OF course taxation OF whisky and tobacco
trespasses no more upon the natural
rights of man than does the taxation of
his clothing of his bedding, of every
implement which he uses in the cultivation eft
his grain and tobacco, and in the distiation or
manufacture of the same. The burden of the
one tax is direct, known, fixed; the whole of it
goes into the governments treasury; the burden
of the other is indirect and unknown, and only a
portion of it comes into the treasury. It reaches
the farmer distiler increased by the profit
upon ITSELF which every merchant must take
the clothing or tools pass through his hands on
their journey to them from the foreign or do
mestic manufacturer. Taxation there must be.
The choice is between kinds of taxation Each
man can decide for himself. if he will examine
the subject free from prejudice which is the
least burdensome for him. for his family, and
for his neighbors. and which is in the end better
for his whole country. That internal taxation
of spirits and tobacco began during the is
not why it should be done away with
now if it be in itself wise. So the fact that the
rates of customs taxation were raised during the
same war far higher than ever before in our
history and have been continued until now,
ought not to determine the manner of their
treatment; this should rather depend upon what
is Just and expedient st the present time.
Neither passion. prejudice nor sentimentality
should have place il the consideration of ques-
tons of taxation.
''As to the expense Of collecting the internal
revenue, l suggest that an amalgamation Of the
customs and internal venue systems is
tirely feasible and that thereby large number
of offices might be abolished. and that the
pense of the whole system might be made not
to exceed that OF efficient enforcement of the
customs laws I earnestly commend this sug-
gestion to the careful consideration of the Con-
gress Is it the part of craftsmanship to give
up a revenue so easily collected. rnaccustom
our people TO its payment and do away with
ali machinery for its collection. when. unless
are m ore favored than the other nations of the
world there will come a day when it will all be
needed If the law for the collection of this
tax is unnecessarily oppressive. amend the law
..rCo do with thu whole rexauua from in